WEBVTT
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Language: en
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Hello I'm Anusuya Chinsamy-Turan.
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I'm a paleontologist based in the
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Biological Sciences Department at the
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University of Cape Town and I'm
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interested in reconstructing the biology
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of extinct animals. Most of what remains
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of these prehistoric animals are their
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bones in teeth. Most paleontologists
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study the anatomy and the biology of
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these bones, but my research involves
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looking within the bones - that is the
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microscopic structure of the bones. I'm
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standing here in the cycad garden of
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the National Botanical Gardens at
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Kirstenbosch in Cape Town. These cycads
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are really special. These plants were
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around even before dinosaurs ruled the
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planet.
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Interestingly enough they survived three
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of the five big mass extinction events
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that rocked this planet. We know also
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that these plants survived the
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extinction events and yet today their
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resilience for survival is again being
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tested.
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We know also that it's not only the cycads
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that are these relics of a bygone
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time that are facing extinction threats but
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many other organisms around the globe.
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The mounting extinction threats that
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biodiversity on our planet is facing
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suggest that we are currently living in
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the sixth extinction. Join our course and
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come and learn about the five big mass
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extinction events that our planet faced
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and come hear also about the sixth
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extinction that biodiversity is
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currently facing. And how the sixth
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extinction is threatening biodiversity
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and ecosystems for the future.